A rabbi at a downtown Bangor congregation said he discovered antisemitic graffiti on a stop sign near the synagogue Sunday morning and reported it to police.
Congregation Beth El Rabbi Sam Weiss said a stop sign near the temple at 183 French St. was vandalized with the words “Nazi Israel 30K murdered” along with a crossed-out Star of David.
As of 11 a.m. Sunday, the graffiti appeared to have been cleaned off of the stop sign at the intersection of French and State streets.
Bangor police are investigating the graffiti for potential criminal mischief charges, Sgt. Jason McAmbley said Monday morning.
“I think people are losing the plot,” Weiss told the Bangor Daily News Sunday. “Comparing the government of the only Jewish state to the Nazi regime is a step too far and antisemitic. There is no need to make that comparison even if you hate Israel.”
Weiss said this is the second time in the last six months the temple has been targeted by antisemitism. In November, the temple reported pro-Hamas flyers that were found along the street outside the temple. One of the posters had a depiction of a masked Hamas fighter with an AK-47 and the words, “Palestine will win.”
Weiss discovered the stop sign vandalism at about 8:30 a.m. Sunday, the day after Iran launched nearly 300 drone attacks at Israel, of which nearly all were intercepted by Israeli defenses.
BDN writer Marie Weidmayer contributed reporting.
